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Friday

'Southside With You' Has Us Asking: Where Is The Love In Black Movies?

Tika Sumpter and Parker Sawyers in Southside With You. Pat Scola/Courtesy of Miramax and Roadside Attractions hide caption

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Pat Scola/Courtesy of Miramax and Roadside Attractions

Review

Code Switch

'Southside With You' Has Us Asking: Where Is The Love In Black Movies?

The movie Southside with You is opening in theaters. The film follows Michelle and Barack Obama's very first date, and shows something we don't get too see too often in film: black romance.

'Southside With You' Has Us Asking: Where Is The Love In Black Movies?

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Sunday

40 Years On, A Controversial Film On Islam's Origins Is Now A Classic

Director Moustapha Akkad (left) with actress Irene Papas during the filming of The Message. The film depicts the life of the Prophet Muhammad. FILMCO INTERNATIONAL / THE KOBAL COLLECTION hide caption

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FILMCO INTERNATIONAL / THE KOBAL COLLECTION

Parallels

40 Years On, A Controversial Film On Islam's Origins Is Now A Classic

The Message, released in 1976 and starring Anthony Quinn, was made with difficulty and condemned by hardliners. One of the challenges: its main character, the Prophet Muhammad, could not be pictured.

40 Years On, A Controversial Film On Islam's Origins Is Now A Classic

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Wednesday

A Mouse Watches Film Noir And Offers Clues To Human Consciousness

Lucky laboratory mice got to watch scenes from Orson Welles' classic Touch of Evil, starring Janet Leigh and Charlton Heston. Keystone/Getty Images hide caption

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Keystone/Getty Images

Shots - Health News

A Mouse Watches Film Noir And Offers Clues To Human Consciousness

Researchers in Seattle have created a public observatory for studying the visual circuitry in a mouse's brain. Among the attractions: watching 18,000 neurons respond to Orson Welles' Touch of Evil.

A Mouse Watches Film Noir And Offers Clues To Human Consciousness

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Wednesday

Thursday

Clash Of The Screens: Should Movie Theaters Allow Texting? AMC Says Maybe

Should texting be allowed at some movie screenings? Brand New Images/Getty Images hide caption

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Brand New Images/Getty Images

All Tech Considered

Clash Of The Screens: Should Movie Theaters Allow Texting? AMC Says Maybe

The CEO of AMC Entertainment says he is considering allowing texting during some movie showings at AMC Theaters. A good thing? Our pop culture blogger and movie critic weigh in.

Clash Of The Screens: Should Movie Theaters Allow Texting? AMC Says Maybe

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Saturday

Saldana As Simone Resurfaces A Debate Beyond Black And White

In this composite image, a comparison has been made between Nina Simone and actress Zoe Saldana. David Redfern/Frazer Harrison/Redferns/Getty Images for Relativity Media hide caption

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David Redfern/Frazer Harrison/Redferns/Getty Images for Relativity Media

Opinion

Saldana As Simone Resurfaces A Debate Beyond Black And White

NPR's Lourdes Garcia-Navarro reflects on the debate over the casting of Zoe Saldana in the role of iconic jazz singer Nina Simone. Saldana wore makeup to darken her skin and look more like Simone.

Saldana As Simone Resurfaces A Debate Beyond Black And White

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Monday

Superlatives Notwithstanding, Even 'The Force' Has Its Limits

Gone with the Wind has sold more than 200 million tickets — most of them back when there were far fewer people on the planet. Hulton Archive/Getty Images hide caption

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Hulton Archive/Getty Images

Review

Movie Reviews

Superlatives Notwithstanding, Even 'The Force' Has Its Limits

NPR film critic Bob Mondello has been listening to the Star Wars hype train. Here's why he isn't climbing aboard.

Superlatives Notwithstanding, Even 'The Force' Has Its Limits

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Thursday

Even In A Film Category Full Of Global Issues, #OscarsSoWhite

An optometrist confronts the killers responsible for his brother's death during the 1965 Indonesian genocide in The Look of Silence. Courtesy Drafthouse Films and Participant Media. hide caption

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Courtesy Drafthouse Films and Participant Media.

Goats and Soda

Even In A Film Category Full Of Global Issues, #OscarsSoWhite

Nominees include globally-minded films set in places like Liberia and Pakistan. But a new study of nominated documentary directors does confirm: #OscarsSoWhite

Saturday

With Rich History And Tax Breaks, Berlin Lures American Filmmakers

A scene from The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 2 takes place in the fictional capital city Panem, which was filmed in Berlin. Murray Close/Lionsgate hide caption

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Murray Close/Lionsgate

Parallels

With Rich History And Tax Breaks, Berlin Lures American Filmmakers

Berlin is a favorite among Hollywood's top directors and actors. In the past year, The Hunger Games: Mockingjay — Part 2, Homeland and Bridge of Spies were all shot on location in the German capital.

With Rich History And Tax Breaks, Berlin Lures American Filmmakers

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Friday

Wednesday

Saturday

He's Shared 'Every Single Word' — But It's The Silence That Rings Louder
YouTube

Race

He's Shared 'Every Single Word' — But It's The Silence That Rings Louder

The video series by Dylan Marron lays bare the film industry's lack of diversity: By cutting all but the dialogue from nonwhite characters, the actor points out how little Hollywood gives them to say.

He's Shared 'Every Single Word' — But It's The Silence That Rings Louder

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Thursday

A Geek's Guide To Growing Up In Inglewood In 'Dope'

Tony Revolori, Kiersey Clemons and Shameik Moore star in the new film, Dope. Scott Falconer/Courtesy of Open Road Films hide caption

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Scott Falconer/Courtesy of Open Road Films

Code Switch

A Geek's Guide To Growing Up In Inglewood In 'Dope'

Film director Rick Famuyiwa drew from his own childhood in Southern California for this new comedy. It follows hip-hop loving high school geeks who get mixed up in a drug heist.

A Geek's Guide To Growing Up In Inglewood In 'Dope'

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Saturday

Science Of Sadness And Joy: 'Inside Out' Gets Childhood Emotions Right

Joy (left, voiced by Amy Poehler) and Sadness (voiced by Phyllis Smith) catch a ride on the Train of Thought in Pixar's Inside Out. The movie opens in theaters nationwide June 19. Disney/Pixar hide caption

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Disney/Pixar

Shots - Health News

Science Of Sadness And Joy: 'Inside Out' Gets Childhood Emotions Right

Pixar's animated fantasy takes viewers inside the mind of an 11-year-old girl named Riley. Psychologists say the film offers an accurate picture of how emotions and memories help make us who we are.

Science Of Sadness And Joy: 'Inside Out' Gets Childhood Emotions Right

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Thursday

Rome's Cinematic 'Dream Factory' Ramps Up Production Once Again

The famous chariot race in Ben-Hur was filmed on a movie set at Cinecittà in 1958. AP hide caption

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AP

Parallels

Rome's Cinematic 'Dream Factory' Ramps Up Production Once Again

Blockbusters like Ben-Hur were filmed at Cinecittà, a 100-acre movie metropolis, during its heyday. After decades of hard times, a tax credit has sparked a revival of "Hollywood on the Tiber."

Rome's Cinematic 'Dream Factory' Ramps Up Production Once Again

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